Authored by Kaaryn Gustafson, the article articulates how poverty leads to purported crimes such as failure to pay fines, living on the streets, and taking of drugs brought about by hopelessness (Gustafson, 2009). As a result, the poor often are arrested and taken to courts. The author wonders why welfare should be criminalized; he suggests that underlying issues should be addressed instead. He details the social framing of welfare deception and traces how welfare cheating became the targets of significant criminal governmental resources and attention. He then discusses the many ways that the law agencies use welfare systems for criminal enforcements (Gustafson, 2009). Gustafson then interrogates how welfare recipients are treated in the courts, particularly the people who are considered inferior. They pay hefty fines and fees. Accordingly, they get unfair consideration and are treated the same way probationers and parolees are.
Finally, the article recommends that it would be prudent to analyze carefully the criminalizing practices associated with poverty. It suggests…show more content… Researchers and advocates have unearthed systematic abuse by the companies dealing with private probation. The move is necessitated by skewed incentives linking the organizations' revenues to fines the probationers have to pay. Together with their affiliates in Georgia, the CJPP has initiated many projects to reform unfair practices associated with private probation (Gustafson, 2009). Perhaps it is imperative that law enforcement agencies work with interest groups, policymakers, community members, and healthcare providers to address the criminalization of poor people. They must be aware of how massive structural issues such as racial profiling and segregation do influence socioeconomic discrepancies (Gustafson, 2009). The ensuing inequalities are a recipe for health outcomes and rates of
